The Priebus-Limbaugh meeting, scheduled to last 30 minutes, went on for an hour-and-a-half, Bateman said. Half of it was about the business of the GOP, and the rest was the two men getting to know each other.

Shortly afterwards, Limbaugh went on air and pushed the party line that the primary process wasn’t rigged by the establishment.

“There is nothing happening this year that has not happened before in terms of delegate selection, allocation, or what have you,” Limbaugh told his listeners fewer than seven days after meeting. “I’m really trying to get you to not think that this particular system is being rigged or you’re being cheated.”

The GOP’s effort appeared to have paid off for all sides. Bateman, who is heavily involved in the party’s effort to marshal talk radio, said Priebus gave talk radio high priority as part of his daily media diet. Bateman is a former producer of Hugh Hewitt’s radio show.